Comments on: Was It Inevitable?

By: Lori Henderson

Lori Henderson — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 01:57:22 +0000

With the last 12 issues, Anime Insider would have had Otaku USA for competition, which would be very hard to beat. Sounds like they were trying to emulate OUSA at the end.

I actually liked the early Anime Invasion, but that’s probably because I was out of anime for about 10 years, and it did help to catch me up. But the internet soon proved to be a better source. I did buy it on and off, but it just never really satisfied me.

By: Heather Ward

Heather Ward — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 09:39:25 +0000

I for one am really sorry to see this magazine fold. Yes, it followed a certain format patterned on Wizard, which was good and bad, but it improved from the Anime Invasion days, especially after Animerica and Newtype USA folded. Please try to check out any of the last twelve issues and compare them to the Anime Invasion days. They had an awesome article on silent era of anime this last issue. I always enjoyed the last page with a quirky snapshot from Japan. Sure I would do an anime mag differently, but there were some really good things they tried to do, like covering Japanese snack foods, one current Japan show with more than 3 line synopsis and also answering time and again those tiring letters from all the anime newbs.

Believe me I did not like the Anime Invasion days, especially as an informed anime fan. It was painful to read, but as a fan I know of the days of fanzines and snail mail vhs fansubs, it was joyful to see a big company like Wizard recognize anime. I bought all the mags and watched as each changed over the years. Now we are down to 2 from 5 mags, all a reflection of the American anime market. It’s even sadder to see Wizard still advertizing AI in the current previews. Gawd a TM cover would have been dreamy.

By: Brian Henderson

Brian Henderson — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:38:12 +0000

Anime Insider’s problem is that it’s published by Wizard, the largest joke in publishing around. Wizard is well-known for never panning an advertiser’s product. If you’re giving them money, they’ll hump your leg. If you’re not, they won’t. That’s why we stopped reading Wizard Magazine years back. Objectivity is a word that doesn’t appear anywhere in their dictionary.